The Silent Treatment
by MagnumPI459
Summary: Can't tell too much or I'll give away the story. Lets just say the title is a big clue. Slight to moderate OOCness you be the judge.
1. Chapter 1

The Silent Treatment

A/N: It's been a week since I submitted my last one-shot. That one was produced because I was stuck with my main project (shameless plug in 3, 2, 1) Quantum Genesis Evangelion (give it a read if you like and review). Well, its seven days later and I've literally only added 120 words to QGE and I thought I might as well give the old brain a "stretch." I've had this idea for a while, so be prepared for some OOCness on Shinji's part. Enjoy!

A/A/N:(edit, 2-7-07, later in the day) yeah, so I was really tired when I wrote this and I made some stupid mistakes (the Hypothalamus, not the Amygdla, effects aggression) as well as forgot to add a few names I meant to look up (I couldn't for the life of me think of two Japanese names for Kensuke's cousins) and I also spot checked the grammar here and there (not to sound like I'm bragging but a lot of the reviews I've gotten have said I've got good grammar and I try to impress).

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"Listen you dolt! I've told you a thousand times dummkoph, I never want to see liverwurst on my sandwiches again." Asuka Langley Soryu giving her fellow roommate a good tongue lashing that apparently he "deserved."

"I'm sorry Asuka. That's all Misato had in the refrigerator." the belittled boy replied.

"That doesn't matter. **If **that was the case," Asuka said in an accusatory manner, as if the pilot of Unit 01 was trying to cover up his failure to follow "simple" directions with a lie, "then it's your fault because **you** should have picked up some better lunch meat!"

"I'm sorry." was all the clearly broken Shinji could muster.

"Hmph!" Asuka snorted and turned around, heading towards the direction of the class rep, Hikari." She didn't know it, but Asuka's latest tirade was nearly the last straw in a string of events that was making Shinji Ikari's life miserable. Although he wanted to cry, Shinji managed to suck it up and walk over to his friend Kensuke's desk. The military otaku, although socially inept in almost every way, was very good at reading people and he could definitely tell Shinji was down in the dumps.

"Hey Shinji, what's the matter?" Kensuke asked.

"Nothing." Shinji answered unconvincingly.

"Oh come, I bet I know what the problem is. Does it start with an "S" and end with an "atan;" other wise known as Soryu?"

This got a rise out of Shinji, causing him to smile. Although he usually didn't encourage name calling of his colleague (namely because it caused her to lash out against him, even if he hadn't said anything), Asuka wasn't exactly on his good side. "Hmmm" was all the troubled pilot let out, but it gave Kensuke license to continue.

"Personally, I feel sorry for you. I have no idea what I what do if I where in your position. I think I would use Unit 01 and its fists until she showed some respect, if you know what I mean." Kensuke winked to his downtrodden friend."

Instead of cheering up Shinji, this only reminded him of a bad experience about a month back, involving his other friend getting injuried and the possessed Unit 03; which indirectly resulted in his entrapment in his own Eva for a month. The smile on Shinji's face reverted to his normal look of solemnity. Kensuke noticed this shift as well and decided to drop the subject of Eva.

"Well, the problem I see is that you're always on the defensive, Shinji. You know what they say; the best defense is a good offense. You've got to strike at her once and a while." Shinji gave him a skeptical look, one that clearly said "easier said then done." "I'm serious Shinji, she doesn't respect you at all. I'd be depressed too, if I had to deal with her all the time. Listen, you've got to do something, and it has to be big too. You can't just burn her once with a witty comeback."

Shinji was now considering this plan of Kensuke's, who was leaning back in his chair strategizing to the best of his ability. He didn't really believe he could ever get Asuka to stop treating him the way she did. He did find the idea attractive though. He didn't want to admit it, but Asuka was a large source of stress in an already stressful existence.

"Ah ha!" Kensuke shouted, attracting the attention of a few classmates and snapping Shinji back to reality. Kensuke looked around sheepishly and lowered his volume before continuing, "I've thought of something. When I was younger I lived in Tokyo 2, before my father worked for NERV. All my family was there so I would visit my two cousins very often. Let me just say, those two would fight every time I would see them. Kenichi was older than Keiko and Keiko would always bug Kenichi. But onetime, Kenichi just ignored Keiko. Not just ignored her, but didn't even acknowledge her. He would deliberately hang around her, but do nothing in response when she tried to bother him. Well, at first Keiko tried her usual tactics, but Kenichi ignored them. Then Keiko tried being nice to him, but he still ignored her. Keiko finally got desperate and started to cry, and plead with him. This was when he laid his demands on her, and she agreed to them. After that, when I would visit, they hardly ever fought."

"I don't know Kensuke, I'm not sure I could do that. When you live, work, and go to school with her, it would be hard not to communicate with her."

"But there are ways around that, Kenichi had some. Shinji, it's the perfect plan for you. It would require no effort on your part. I think it's totally doable." Kensuke was really excited about this idea, mainly because it knocked Asuka a few pegs down, to where she belonged in his opinion.

Shinji wasn't totally sold though and tried to weasel his way out of any definite decision, "I don't know Kensuke, maybe. I'll think about it."

Kensuke knew Shinji well despite only meeting him a few months ago and could tell his friend didn't want to talk about it anymore. "Alright, think about it. Now lets eat, I'm starvin'. What's on the menu?"

"Liverwurst sandwich." Shinji said in a deadpan tone. Kensuke gave him a look of disgust and reached into his own bag. Personally, Shinji agreed with Kensuke and Asuka; he hated liverwurst, not to the extent of Asuka's loathing but he really didn't enjoy eating it. But it was, in reality, the only lunchmeat in the refrigerator. As he grimaced and took his first bite, Shinji wondered why in the world Misato bought the stuff.

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The loud horn of a bus made Shinji jump as he unlocked the door to the apartment he called home. He shared it with several others; his superior officer at NERV, Misato Katsuragi, the German immigrant, Asuka Langley Soryu, and the hyper intelligent penguin, Pen². It was late in the evening; tests at headquarters had gone longer than scheduled. It hadn't been a smooth synch ratio monitoring. Shinji's score had been excellent, but Asuka's had fallen even further below his own. After the results had been given, he could tell Asuka was angry; so angry that she hadn't even said anything but instead stormed off when her score had been announced. She didn't even accompany Shinji home, although she had stopped doing so since he had surpassed her score. He didn't know if she was home yet, so with trepidation on his voice said, "I'm home, is anyone here?" He noticed after announcing himself that Asuka's shoes were at the door and realized he might have provoked an angry beast. He cautiously entered the living room, which only angered Asuka even further (who was sitting on the couch).

"Soooo, the all mighty pilot has entered the building, announcing himself to the place so all can prepare to worship him!"

Shinji lowered his head to stare at the floor, "I'm sorry Asuka, I didn't know if anyone else was here."

"Of course, so that's the real reason," she said with sarcasm practically dripping from her words, "Well, mission accomplished Shinji; I now know you're here! Great job!"

"I'm sorry." Shinji said softly

Asuka's sarcasm morphed into rage as her volume increased to a deafening shout. "Dammit, how can a spineless worm like you possibly beat my synch ratio; it's infuriating!" With the declaration of this insulting comment, Asuka stood up from the couch and marched right in front of Shinji. "You're a brainless moron and I hate you Ikari! I wish I had never met you! I wish you had never been born, THIRD CHILD! I HATE YOU!" Asuka smacked the side of Shinji's head before turning and running to her room, slamming the door on her way inside.

Shinji stood there dazed. He was stunned. Tears were at the corners his of eyes, threatening to cascade down his face. But unbeknownst to Shinji or Asuka for that matter, inside Shinji's head, in the inner sanctum of his brain, something snapped; not only figuratively, but literally as well. He, at that point decided Asuka's outburst was the last straw. He hadn't deserved that kind of treatment from her and he didn't have to take it. He was sick and tired of the crap from her and wasn't going to let her get away with it. He stormed off to his room slamming his own door, quite out of character. He was truly angry.

One might ask why Shinji suddenly went from depressed to irate in only a few seconds. Well, there was mention of something snapping in Shinji's brain. Not a sudden breaking of his nerves, but literally a piece of cholesterol snapped inside an artery supplying blood to his HypothalamusTo anyone who doesn't know, the Hypothalamus is an important structure that influences aggressive behavior, among other things. It seems that despite all the head trauma he received from piloting the Eva, it was only a slap to Shinji's cranium that finally broke the decade old chunk of fatty tissue in the vital artery supplying blood to the equally vital brain organ. This effectively increased the amount of blood supply, therefore increasing the output of his previously neglected Hypothalamus. Hmmm, very interesting.

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Shinji sat on his bed stewing until he heard Misato enter the apartment. He hadn't even touched his S-Dat Player and instead had been thinking about his conversation with Kensuke earlier that day. While he was still furious with Asuka, he didn't want to hurt her. He still wanted her to be nice to him, to be his friend. He wanted to teach her lesson. So when Misato announced herself to the apartment, Shinji got up and walked to the kitchen.

"Hiya Shinji. How was your day?" Misato asked cheerfully. Putting his plan into motion, Shinji masked his angry feelings and replied nonchalantly.

"It was okay, nothing big happened."

"Well that's good. It's your turn to cook tonight, so what's for dinner?"

Shinji stuck his head inside the refrigerator, pretending to look for possible entrées, but really he was hiding the evil grin on his face. "Oh, I was thinking I could use up the rest of this liverwurst."

"Oh, good! I love liverwurst and I haven't any for lunch for a while now. I don't know why, but as long as I can remember, I've always liked liverwurst. Yum!"

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The timer's bell gave a short ding to signify that Shinji's liverwurst casserole had been in the oven long enough. After setting the table, he called Misato, telling her dinner was ready. Misato grabbed a beer from the fridge and sat down. She was about to start shoveling in the serving in front of her, but stopped when she noticed they were missing one person.

"Shinji, did you call Asuka?" Shinji simply shook his head. Misato was taken aback slightly; expecting Shinji to of alerted his roommate that dinner was ready. She decided to ignore this slight quirk and call Asuka herself. "Asuka, dinner's ready!"

The two at the dinner table heard a muffled response of "I'm coming" and waited. Asuka appeared momentarily, looking perturbed that they had sat down without her. "Someone could have told me earlier, sheesh!" She sat down and plunged her fork into the neutral looking casserole. Her face twisted when she put the contents in her mouth. "Ewww! Is this liverwurst? Misato, did you make this?"

Misato, who had a mouthful of food herself, shook her head in reply.

"Don't tell me you made this Shinji." Apparently she had calmed down enough to be on first name terms again. "We just had a talk today about how I feel about this pathetic excuse for food." At this statement Misato gave a sad look at her beloved liverwurst, opened her mouth to argue in its defense, but closed it after thinking about whether she really wanted to debate liverwurst with Asuka. "Its almost like you ignored what I said before."

Shinji, had his eyes closed and was stoically chewing his food. After a second of silence, Asuka continued, "Hey stupid, are you deaf as well as dumb, huh?"

Shinji continued to sit silently, now sipping on his tea. Asuka was visibly getting more irritated. "Answer me you dummkoph!" Misato gave a worried look at Shinji, who looked up and gave her a wink not visible to Asuka. He returned his gaze to his plate, picking up some food and placing it his mouth.

"Answer me Shinji." She said quietly and shook his shoulder gently.

Again no answer.

"Misato, what's going on? Why isn't he talking?"

Misato gave a shrug and continued to chew her food. She honestly didn't know what was going on.

"What the hell is going on? Can't you hear me!? Please, talk to me." She shook him harder this time, causing him to drop the food in his chopsticks.

After letting the questions hang for a moment, Shinji asked calmly, "Misato, is there a window open? I think I feel a breeze."

Asuka didn't let Misato answer however, "Idiot, what kind of question is that, I don't feel a …" She stopped mid sentence with a look like she was just slapped across her face. Realization had dawned and she got up without saying word and walked to her room, now with a look of hurt on her face.

After letting a minute of silence go by, Misato's curiosity peaked and she couldn't take it anymore. "Shinji, **what** was that?"

After giving a small sigh, Shinji began relaying what happened during his day starting from his talk with Kensuke to Asuka's slap to his head.

Misato let his story sink in for a minute. Shinji was expecting her to tell him to apologize to Asuka or something along that line, but instead she said, "Good for you Shinji. It's about time you stood up to Asuka."

"Really?"

"Yeah Shinji, I've been trying to tell you she has been pushing you around too much. I think it's good you're finally taking charge."

"Wow, I wasn't even sure I wanted to do this earlier."

"Well, this is a good thing you're doing. I'll help you anyway I can."

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A/N: I originally planned this to be a one-shot. However half way through writing this I figured I'd couldn't do it justice without making this into a multi chapter story (not too long, 2-3 chaps). But like I said, my main project is Quantum Genesis Evangelion, while this was something to get rid of the writer's bloc. I will work on QGE first, but if I'm still stuck, I'll add on to this. Hope you liked it, Peace

Also, I was listening to the Death/Rebirth version of Pachebel's Canon in D while writing this story. (Yes on repeat, the same song over and over again, the entire time)


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A/N: So, my other story is getting harder and harder to write, and I've been distracted with school, work, and most important of all Xbox 360. I thought I'd give this another go, so enjoy.

And as usual, I don't own Evangelion and never will (sigh!).

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BEEP BEEP BEEP! Shinji slapped his alarm clock harsher than usual. It did result in the termination of the infernal racket that awoke him, but the clock was also knocked on to the floor and unplugged in the process. Shinji let loose a sigh, he would fix it later; his plan of getting even with Asuka required him to be out of the house before she sought out her usual supply of breakfast. He quickly showered, prepared a piece of toast, and left a note explaining his early departure in the one place he knew Misato alone would find it.

Although Asuka didn't like to think such things, Misato and the red-headed German were similar in some ways. Their mutual hatred of the morning was eerily uncanny. So it was no surprise that they both got up at such a late hour. But Misato got to the bathroom first, so Asuka decided to fill up on breakfast before her shower.

"Shinji, I don't smell breakfast cooking. There had better…" her voice trailed off as she was met by an empty kitchen. And by empty, it wasn't only devoid of people, but edible food as well. This was completely unexpected, and it being so she was completely caught of guard. Even when Shinji left for school before she did, he would leave her something to eat; albeit, not always five star cuisine, but it was all better than nothing. She sat down, unsure of what to do next. Although unlikely, Shinji might of overslept, which meant she should go to his room and give him a rude, loud wake up call. Her thoughts were interrupted when she jerked in surprise at the sound of Misato's voice.

"Morning Asuka, have you eaten yet?" Misato was talking half like a zombie, half like a robot. She made her way to the fridge and opened it up. As Asuka answered, Misato stopped her usual process of immediately inhaling a beer and instead stared at note lying on top of her six pack.

"No Misato, Shinji hasn't made me anything. I bet he's still asleep."

Misato, in a matter of seconds, opened and had finished chugging the first of many morning beers. "Waaaaaaaaahoooooo! That's much better," Misato said with much more vigor, "I don't think that's the case Asuka. According to this note, Shinji's already on his way to school."

Asuka's face grew disheartened. So he had skipped out on making her breakfast. Even during the worst times, he would still make her breakfast; like when she had kissed him and then later yelled at him when she smelled Misato's perfume on Kaji, there had been fresh fruit and toast out the following morning. Until now she really hadn't given it much thought about her source of breakfast, in the same way she didn't think about gravity; it always happened. But now, she wondered why he made her breakfast at all, even when she had been nasty to him. And why the sudden change, was it because of yesterday?

"Anyway Asuka, I'm late for work and I don't have time to eat here. That means you'll have to make something yourself Asuka."

Asuka answered with a frown and a, "Hmph!"

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"Kensuke! Hey Kensuke." Shinji had been eager to share the results of his operation.

"What's up Shinji?" Kensuke had never seen his friend looking so enthusiastic.

"I did it Kensuke!"

The thought of Shinji groping Misato quickly came to Kensuke's mind, but he quickly filed that into the "what Kensuke finds important" part of his brain. He gave a look to Shinji, signifying his eagerness to know what Shinji did. "What'd you do?"

"I gave Asuka the silent treatment."

"That's great Shinji, tell me about it."

Shinji proceeded in telling Kensuke about the previous evening; the fight that started it, his choice of dinners, and the results at the dining room. "And today, I didn't make her breakfast."

"Good Shinji, good. But you know this is only the start. She might have shown some initial weakness, but that was probably from the shock of you doing what you did." Kensuke was looking at Shinji in a new light, never fully believing his timid friend could have done this. "You've got to be vigilant, she'll probably try to reassert control of the situation today.

"But Kensuke, I was thinking; what if today, because I didn't make her breakfast, Asuka decides to hit me. She's smacked me for less you know. I can't just ignore physical abuse."

Kensuke took hold of his own chin and looked upwards, posing into a classic thinking position. After a brief pause, Kensuke answered, "Well Shinji, you might have to let her hit you; take one for the team; you know."

Shinji's confidence melted like a snowball in hell at this statement. "Wait a minute; I thought there were ways around this kind of thing. I don't want to get a black eye."

"Don't worry Shinji. I think you have to put more faith in the Class Rep, you know? Asuka might get one or at the most, two shots in, but the Rep-Nazi won't tolerate rough housing in her class, even if it is her best friend dong it. And speak of the red haired devil, here she is."

Shinji started to turn around, almost instinctively, to witness the entrance of Asuka but Kensuke quickly stopped him. "Hey, what are doing? I said you've got to stay vigilant. That means completely ignoring her. What good was last night if you go and undo all your progress? Okay, I think she's heading this way; which means I'm going to get preemptive and fetch Hikari."

Kensuke got up to retrieve the only chance for Shinji to stay injury free from Asuka. Shinji's anger and confidence he was feeling the previous night was nowhere to be seen and he was now relying on Kensuke to return with his only chance at salvation.

"Hey Shinji! What's the big idea with not making me breakfast, huh? I nearly starved this morning," Asuka was standing behind him, and it took all his will power to not turn around and try to appease the girl. "Hey, I'm talking to you Ikari! Answer me when I'm talking to you!" Asuka, by shouting was not only making it clear to Shinji she was angry, but was also attracting the attention of their classmates. "Verdammit, I'm talking, at least look at me!" She half hit, half pushed Shinji in the shoulder. Shinji, now too afraid to answer, continued staring in the opposite direction of Asuka.

"Hey look at Ikari and Soryu." The classmates initially attracted to the loud voice of Asuka were now riveted to the scene of Shinji completely ignoring the now irate girl. "Yeah, he's actually ignoring her, ha! Serves her right, she's always harassing Ikari." Asuka looked around; noticing the attention and whispers of her classmates basically mocking the lack of respect Shinji was giving her.

For the briefest moment as she looked around, a look of weakness and despair flashed across Asuka's face, before it was replaced with one of utmost rage. Shinji, who was still in his seat facing away from her, suddenly felt the physical manifestation of what could only be Asuka's fury as a sensation of arctic ice and blistering fire washed across his back at the same time. He logically concluded she was going to hit him with the force of an asteroid impact and flinched. He was right of course as Asuka had raised her fist, ready to bring the wrath of God upon this infidel who dared defied her. The whole class was staring in silence, watching with the eagerness of ancient Romans at a gladiator fight in the Coliseum. She was just starting to bring her finishing blow down, but was interrupted by a shrill voice.

"ASUKA, STOP!" The Class Representative Hikari had just entered the room, followed by Kensuke who looked relieved at the now frozen Asuka. "You can't do **that**, you can't go around hitting people, even if it is just Shinji!" Shinji, icy adrenaline still pumping through his veins, suddenly took offense at this statement, what did "even if it is **just** Shinji" mean? But instead of pointing this out to Hikari, he thought it best to let her continue scolding Asuka. "I've tolerated your behavior before, but I can't ignore this. You were really going to hurt him!"

"But Hikari…"

"No Asuka, there are no excuses. You're lucky the sensei wasn't in here, you could have been suspended for this alone."

Asuka was now red with embarrassment, taking a rebuke from the only person who could get away with it scot-free. Instead of saying anything else, she angrily stormed to her desk and fell into her chair, head still held high and looking straight ahead. The class had been silent, watching the unfolding events like a group of teenage girls watching Grey's Anatomy, but now the whispers returned, and they continuously grew louder. When they became audible to Asuka, she whipped her head around and gave the class a look that could kill, and motioned her finger going across her neck, signaling what would happen if she heard another word about what just happened. The whispers quickly died and normal, Asuka-free conversations popped back up. Kensuke returned to his seat and whispered, "You owe me, Shinji."

Shinji pale faced, looked at Kensuke and shakily told him, "I think I need a new pair of pants."

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When the lunch bell rang, Shinji could have been an Olympic athlete, considering the speed he left the class room at. Avoiding the color red, he made his way to the roof and when at his spot of tranquility and solitude, he leaned against the railing overlooking the courtyard. Although his courage had left him, his resolve to show Asuka how it felt to be mistreated was still standing by him. He was therefore pleased at the morning events. It was an added bonus that he escaped without being struck by Asuka. He was too far into this to back out anyways, he had to finish this; he couldn't run away.

"Hey Shinji, there you are. I barely noticed you leave when the bell rang." Kensuke had walked out the door onto the roof. "Listen, I think we need to plan this out, a strategy for you know who."

"You mean Asuka?"

"Don't say the name, don't say the name!"

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Shinji had just finished his daily trek from school, and was settling down on the couch of the living room. He had made sure he had gotten to the apartment before Asuka, which was one of the things he and Kensuke had decided on. Kensuke had thought Shinji's breakfast plan was a good instinct, but more needed to be done. That was what Shinji was setting up now. He turned on the TV just as the door to the apartment opened up. He heard Asuka setting her school bag down in the hallway and taking her shoes off. "Stupid Japanese, why take your shoes off anyways. You just get your socks dirty." She was muttering to herself when she walked into the living room, but stopped when she noticed she wasn't alone. Shinji could understand her expecting of an empty house; she always got home before him. She said neutrally, "Oh you're here." Shinji didn't even acknowledge her presence. He heard Asuka walk to her room and shut the door.

He double-checked his surroundings; there were none of Asuka's magazines lying around (he personally had made sure of it), he was in possession of the remote control, and he was holding the last can of Asuka's favorite soda. Asuka returned from her room and went into the kitchen. Shinji heard a loud "Damn!" come from behind him. Asuka returned from the kitchen holding a glass of water.

She sat down on the far end of the couch and looked through the pile of magazines on the table. "Damn! Where'd my magazines go?" She looked to what was on the TV. It was a documentary on the 2nd Impact. "Don't you get enough of that government propaganda at school Shinji?" Shinji gave no indication he was just spoken to and continued watching. "Whatever, could you at least change the channel, I hate these kinds of shows." No answer from Shinji. "Hey listen to me 3rd Child," up to this point Shinji was actually feeling sympathetic to Asuka and was considering talking to her again, but when she addressed him as the 3rd Child his anger rose. When they first met, she had called him 3rd and he didn't mind, but as they spent more time together she had stopped. Now recently, when he surpassed her synch ratio, Asuka's use of "3rd child" had returned and he didn't like it. "I've had enough of this in school; I don't want to deal with your crap at home too!"

No answer from Shinji.

"Don't ignore me Ikari…" but before Asuka could finish, Shinji got up without looking at her and walked to his room. Asuka continued staring at the hallway where she had lost sight of Shinji and with tears welling in her eyes she continued, "… please, don't ignore me. Not you too, not like Mama."

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A/N: And that's that. I listened to Bach's Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major Prelude, you might recognize the title from Death/Rebirth. It is also what Shinji is playing (although much slower) in the episode where he and Asuka kiss. There is a lot more to Suite No. 1 as well as five more Cello Suites by Bach, I recommend listening to them all (over 2 hours worth of music).


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

A/N: I was originally going to wrap this story up by chapter 2, but I didn't want it to be longer compared to the first chapter.

Hey, I still don't own Neon Genesis Evangelion

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Shinji left his room an hour later to start on dinner. Misato wasn't home yet but she hadn't called about staying late at work. He thought about what to make as he rummaged through the slim pickings of the refrigerator. Unfortunately for his plan as well as Misato, there was no more liverwurst to use. He sighed and pulled out some vegetables, for a stir-fry. When he shut the door, he found Asuka standing in the kitchen.

"Hey Shinji," said Asuka in a sickly sweet voice that couldn't possibly been sincere, "what are you making?" Shinji had been prepared for this and pulled a cutting board out to chop his vegetables in silence. "Whatever it is, I'm sure it will be good." Instead of buttering him up, Asuka's words were having the opposite effect on Shinji. He could see right through the insincerity of Asuka's compliment; he knew she just wanted him to pay her attention again, so things could go back the way were without her losing face. This wasn't an apology; it was a last ditch attempt to return to normalcy.

Asuka leaned against the counter next to Shinji, who was now underway with chopping some green peppers. "Wow, Shinji; you're really good with that knife, so quick…" BAM! Asuka was interrupted by Shinji slamming the knife onto the cutting board, creating the loud noise. Asuka looked pleadingly at Shinji who returned to cutting his vegetables, not even glancing at her. Asuka could take a hint though and she turned and walked out the door.

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"Oooh that smells good Shinji," Misato had just gotten home and was shouting from the entryway. A moment later, Misato was in the kitchen admiring the sizzling stir-fry.

"It's just about ready."

"Oh good, then set the table while I get Asuka," she winked at Shinji and left. Shinji proceeded to set the table wondering what to do next. Asuka seemed close to the breaking point, but he didn't want to push her too far away. Shinji was still hoping he could salvage a friendship from this battle of wills.

"Lets hurry up and eat, I'm starving!" Misato returned followed by a dour-faced Asuka. Shinji put the last set of chopsticks on the table and sat down.

"Okay, we're ready." The two girls sat down as well and proceeded to dig in. Besides the early declarations of how good dinner was by Misato and the occasional "Wark" by PenPen the three ate in silence. While Shinji normally ate without talking too much, now he was thinking what to do. Suddenly a light bulb went on above Shinji's head because he had just thought of something, brilliant in his opinion. Although initially excited by the idea, upon further review, it was extremely risky and would require Shinji to act like someone he wasn't. His heart beat racing, Shinji took a deep breath.

"I need some salt," said Shinji in the coldest tone he had ever muttered. The salt shaker was right in front of Asuka. "I guess you can't get it Misato," and then Shinji for the first time in two days made eye contact with Asuka, but with the nastiest look Shinji could come up with and with the most disdain in his voice he could muster, Shinji continued, "Hand me the salt, **Second Child**." Shinji had never referred to Asuka or Rei by their designations of NERV and Misato nearly spit out her beer from the shock.

Shinji eyes left Asuka's, which were veiled with sadness despite the look of resentment on her face. He was hoping she understood how he felt every time she called him "Third Child."

Surprisingly to Shinji, Asuka didn't break down or cry but instead picked up the salt and pushed it towards him. "There you go; and my name is Asuka, don't you forget it. She spoke the latter half of her sentence with a venom so poisonous, Shinji understood right away two things: he shouldn't call her Second Child anymore and that he had underestimated Asuka, she wasn't so close to breaking as he had thought.

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Shinji had been dead wrong about Asuka; she hadn't been close to breaking. It was a testament to Asuka's willpower and strength, because it had been a quiet week in the Katsuragi apartment and Shinji thought he might actually break before Asuka.

After that night he called her Second Child, progress wasn't so fast or straightforward on Shinji's plan. While still disheveled, Asuka was not showing signs of giving in or changing for the better at all. Shinji was in bed, thinking about the past week, it had depressing. They say you won't truly realize how much you enjoy something until it's taken away. Shinji liked talking to Asuka, despite the rough treatment that she gave him (and it seemed like recently it had become more and more frequent). He had no idea what made her treat him like so horribly. Did she really find him pathetic like she said? Was he really a coward? Before Asuka came to Tokyo-3 he might have said yes, but he had changed a lot. He still didn't like piloting the Eva, but he did it anyway for more magnanimous reasons than wanting praise from his father (after what the commander made him do to Toji, Shinji would never care what his father thought of him). He was so confused and he was tired of being in that state. Shinji decided tomorrow he would ask for advice, not too sure where to find it. He turned over and closed his eyes. Tomorrow was a new day, a Saturday for that matter and he wanted to get some sleep.

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Asuka Langley Soryu was having trouble sleeping, unknowingly in a similar state of mind as her roommate Shinji Ikari. She was brooding over the past week. Asuka hadn't realized how much talking to the baka meant to her. Correction, how much the baka talking to her meant to her. She had tried several times talking to him over the past week, but they all resulted the same way: Shinji not acknowledging her and Asuka storming off to sulk.

Why was he doing this? Was he finally realizing that she was in competition with him and they couldn't be friends? Although Asuka had started to treat Shinji like an enemy after his sync ratio had surpassed hers as well as his number of solo Angel kills increased while hers remained at one, she hadn't realized how changed the dynamic of their relationship would be if he started to act the same way. Asuka let out a quiet sniff as her confused thoughts raced through her head. "Why do I care if that damn idiot talks to me or not! I shouldn't, I don't need anyone!"

It took awhile for Asuka to get to sleep, but it wasn't a peaceful slumber when she finally did; it was wracked with nightmares. When she woke up, it was 11:30 and she was hungry. It had taken some adjusting, but Asuka was finally not shocked every time there was no food prepared for her when she woke up. She was not beyond feeling indignant about her current situation. No one was home and she had no breakfast. "Where are that damn drunk and the baka!"

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Shinji had woken up about two hours before Asuka and been surprised to find Misato gone. She had left a note saying she would be at work for a few hours catching up on some stuff. Despite the possible teasing that would result from it, he had wanted to ask her for advice on the situation.

The train was unusually vacant, but then again it was a Saturday. Shinji had decided that his conversation was one that should be done not over the phone, but face to face. He sat, moving to the motions of the car, listening to his SDat. Shinji lurched to the side as the train began to slow, arriving at the stop before NERV headquarters. Shinji was surprised to see someone board the car out his peripheral vision. When he turned to look, his stare was met with a charming, stubbly smile and a wave

"Hey Shinji, what are you doing up so early? Don't you have today off?"

"Oh Mr. Kaji, hello."

Kaji, grinned and said exasperatedly, "Kid, how many times do I have to tell you, it's just Kaji. You don't know how old you make me feel when you call me mister."

Shinji lowered his head and replied, "Oh, sorry."

"Hey, no need to beat your self up over it, just don't do it again."

"Okay, Mr.… Kaji, sorry."

"It's all right, so **what** are you doing coming in to work on a Saturday?"

"Oh, It's not like I'm scheduled for a test or anything. I really just wanted to ask Misato something."

Kaji's eyes brightened for a moment before answering slyly, "Katsuragi, ehh? Does that fox have answers you seek?"

Shinji shuttered when he heard Kaji refer to the women who had become a mother-figure to him as a "fox." He shook his head slightly to get rid of the mental images and replied, "I don't know Kaji, that's why I'm asking."

"So, what are you asking?"

Maybe it was Kaji's charisma or charm, but Shinji didn't think before answering an embarrassing question with a revealing response, "It's about Asuka." Shinji covered his mouth, horrified he let such a private matter escape him.

"Ah, trouble in paradise. What problems can you two lovebirds be facing at such a young age."

"Whaaat!?!?"

Just tell me Shinji, have you gotten to second base, third, or is it that you've already _scored_ and you're ready to step up to the plate again?"

Shinji had no idea what Kaji was talking about now, and he stared at the smiling man, contemplating his talk of baseball.

"I'll take your silence as an "all of the above." So you've gotten to know Asuka in the biblical sense then. I'll admit you're a bit young for sex, but…"

"WHAT!?" Shinji's confusion cleared in an instant and his look of bewilderment transformed into one of horror. "Kaji you're wrong, I never done that with Asuka. Please stop!"

"So you and Asuka aren't an item then?"

Shinji answered with a slight tone of dejection underneath the indifferent one, "No, we aren't. To be honest, I don't know if she wants to be my friend, let alone if she respects me." Shinji didn't know why he was telling Kaji all this, maybe it was the sense of ease that emanated from the double agent or maybe it was the sense that despite his raunchy teasing, Kaji truly cared about the Eva pilot.

At this point, Shinji decided to let Kaji in on his plan. He spent the rest of the train ride recapping his week of silence against Asuka. Kaji didn't interrupt and his only reaction was a look of surprise that almost said out loud "I can't believe you've got the balls to do this."

As the train stopped and the doors opened Kaji stood up. "Well Shinji, I wish I had time to sit and discuss this with you, but I've really do have work to do. The only thing I will say is this: don't leave her waiting too long. If she had any desire for friendship, you'll blow the chance if you drag this out too long. If you need to talk later in the afternoon I should be free, in my melon patch."

And with that statement Kaji left Shinji thinking about his situation. His thoughts were interrupted by the announcement that the train was about to leave. Shinji gave a surprised gasp and leapt from his seat, lunging for the closing train doors. Unfortunately he didn't make it and the train left NERV headquarters. "Oh well, at least I'll I time to think about what I want to ask Misato."

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A/N: This chapter is shorter than the other two and there is not as much going on. I promise I'll conclude this story by the next chapter (or two). I just wanted to put something out there because I haven't worked on anything for a while. Peace!


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